Professional Development Funding for Principal Leadership (PPCA-PPCBU)

A variation to the Primary Principals’ (PPCBU-PPCBU) Collective Agreement was accepted in March 2026.

It enables eligible principals to access up to $15,000 for approved leadership development activities over the term of the agreement.

The funding is provided in five $3,000 tranches from 2026 to 2028.

It applies to principals covered by the 2025–2027 Primary Principals’ (PPCA–PPCBU) Collective Agreement, or if they have signed the 13 March promulgated PPCBU-based Individual Employment Agreement (IEA).

Your principal can choose how each tranche is distributed, either:

As a Curriculum Change Allowance, paid directly to the principal
Via the Professional Development (PLD) Fund, paid to the school

What is a Curriculum Change Allowance?

The Curriculum Change allowance recognises the work involved in leading curriculum reform over the term of the agreement.

It is paid directly to your principal through payroll as a taxable allowance and can be used at their discretion.

For each tranche, your principal must notify the Ministry of Education by the cut-off date if they wish to receive the payment as a Curriculum Change Allowance.

When this happens, no action is required by your board.

If your principal does not notify the Ministry by the cut-off date, the payment will automatically go to your board’s PLD Fund.

Your principal will then need to submit a written application to your board to access the Fund.

Note: Principals on leave without pay during the relevant period are not eligible to receive a payment.

However, if the leave was for less than six months, they may apply for the tranche on returning to work by contacting the Ministry’s Employment Relations team at employment.relations@education.govt.nz.

What is the PLD Fund?

The Professional Development Fund is a tagged resource for boards to support the ongoing development of their principal’s leadership skills.

Eligible boards will receive the tagged funding through their operations grant.

Boards must ensure that any approved activities are:

Eligible under the funding criteria
Aligned with the school’s strategic priorities and the principal’s leadership development goals
Demonstrate a clear link to student outcomes.

Note: this funding supplements (rather than replaces) your existing principal professional learning and development (PLD) plans and budgets.

What can the funding be used for?

The funding is strictly for professional development that strengthens educational leadership and improves learner outcomes.

It can be used for any activity listed on the Principal Development Map (PDM)open_in_new and for other professional learning that meets the Ministry of Education’s criteriaopen_in_new.

You can approve Fund use when:

The principal is eligible (covered by PPCBU or a relevant PPCBU-based IEA)
The activity is listed on the current Principal Development Map (PDM) or meets the additional criteria for other professional learning
The application clearly explains how it will strengthen leadership capability and improve student outcomes
The budget is for the principal only and includes eligible costs such as course fees, economy-class airfares, reasonable accommodation, ground transport, and meals (excluding alcohol)
Costs are itemised, reasonable, and comply with school finance, travel, and sensitive expenditure policies.

You cannot approve Fund use when:

The activity is not listed on the PDM and does not meet the additional criteria
The primary purpose is unrelated to professional leadership (for example, personal well-being, health, or leisure)
The budget includes costs for anyone other than the principal (for example, family members)
Costs are ineligible or excessive (for example, business-class travel, premium accommodation, unreasonable meals, or alcohol).

What is the Fund application and approval process?

We recommend that you download and use our forms to help you complete this process:

The key steps are outlined below.

The principal submits a written application that:

Confirms eligibility and available Fund balance
Describes the PDM-listed activity (or additional eligible activity) and provider
Explains how the activity will enhance leadership capability and benefit the school and student outcomes
Provides an itemised budget and funding split if needed (Fund vs other PLD budgets)
Confirms the financial integrity of the information provided.

Your board:

Assesses the application against the Fund criteria
Approves, approves with conditions (such as capping costs or excluding specific items), or declines the application
Sets expectations for post-activity reporting by the principal, including how the learning has been applied and shared
Records in the board minutes that the principal's application was received, assessed against Fund criteria, the decision made (with any amount or conditions), and expectations for post-activity reporting.

Finance, sensitive expenditure, and audit

Under section 127(2)(g) of the Education and Training Act 2020open_in_new, a board must perform its functions and exercise its powers in a financially responsible way.

This means demonstrating that decisions are appropriate, spending is justified, and outcomes are recorded.

Clear documentation is essential. Your board should:

Follow your finance, travel, and sensitive expenditure policies, and the Office of the Auditor-General's guidance on sensitive expenditureopen_in_new
Ensure receipts are submitted and verified against the approved budget
Maintain a complete audit file, including the application and checklist, relevant board minutes, receipts, and the final report
Record unspent funds at year's end as a tagged cash reserve that is carried forward (rather than as a liability or personal entitlement).

If you are unsure about any aspect of expenditure or process, contact us or your Ministry School Finance Advisoropen_in_new for guidance.

What happens to the funding if a principal moves to another school?

The Fund is attached to the principal (not the school) and follows the principal as an entitlement.

This means if the principal moves to another school, the previous board must transfer any remaining fund money to the new board.

For example:

If a principal has $2,000 left in their Fund and moves to a new school halfway through the year, the old board transfers the $2,000 to the new board.

The principal can then use that money at their new school, provided it meets the fund criteria.

Before transferring, the previous board should:

Reconcile the remaining balance, taking into account any approved or completed activities
Ensure documentation for all completed activities is complete and ready for audit
Provide the new board with a clear statement of the transferred amount and the year(s) to which it relates.

What happens to the Fund if a principal retires or leaves the sector?

If there is no new school to transfer the Fund to, your board should:

Complete approved activities, including reimbursements and reporting.
Confirm whether any balance remains.
Manage any unspent funds in line with Ministry guidance and audit requirements.

Note: the Fund must not be paid to the departing principal or treated as a personal allowance.

Questions your board could ask:

Has the principal chosen to receive this tranche as a Curriculum Allowance?
If not, have we received the tagged funds in our operations grant?
Do we understand what the Fund can (and cannot) be used for?
Have we discussed the Fund with our principal?
Are we using the "Professional Development Fund for Principal Leadership – Application Form and Approval Checklist" to guide the process?
Does the proposal align with our strategic priorities and the principal's leadership development goals?
Will it strengthen educational leadership and improve outcomes for our students?
Are the costs "actual and reasonable" and consistent with our finance, travel, and sensitive expenditure policies?
Have we set expectations for post-activity reporting, and how will we monitor this?
Have we recorded the application details and board decision in our meeting minutes?
Are we maintaining a file with the documentation required for the annual audit?
Have we recorded any unused funds as a tagged cash reserve for the following year?
Do we understand our obligations for managing unused funds if our principal moves to another school, retires, or leaves the sector?

Templates, resources, and references

Click on the link(s) below to access this topic's templates, resources, and references.

Depending on your device, these may download or open in a separate browser.

Links from us

Ministry of Education

Office of the Auditor General

Sensitive expenditureopen_in_new

Education and Training Act 2020

Section 127 – Paramount objective of boards in governing schoolsopen_in_new